One Way Ticket Team
There are now so many remote-work visas that choosing one has become a project in itself: more than 60 countries run their own digital nomad programs. We compared the 12 most in-demand destinations of 2025 across the four parameters that actually drive the decision: minimum income, visa duration, tax regime, and whether the visa leads to permanent status.
Southern Europe: pricier, but with a path to a passport
Spain and Portugal lead on one simple criterion: time spent on a nomad visa counts toward permanent residency and citizenship. That turns a "one-year visa" into a full emigration strategy.
- •Spain: income from €2,762/month (200% of minimum wage), 1-year visa → 3-year residence permit, 24% flat tax under the Beckham regime for remote employees
- •Portugal (D8): income from €3,480/month (4x the €870 minimum wage in 2025; ≈€3,680 in 2026), 4-month visa → 2-year residence permit, citizenship after 10 years (since 19 May 2026)
- •Italy: from ~€28,000/year, launched in April 2024, highly qualified professionals only, 1-year renewable permit
- •Greece: income from €3,500/month (+20% for a spouse, +15% per child), 1-year visa → 2-year permit, 50% income tax discount if you shift tax residency
- •Croatia: income of ~€3,300/month, status granted for up to 18 months since 2025, foreign income untaxed locally — but the time does not count toward permanent residency
Eastern Europe and the Caucasus: the budget entrance
- •Hungary (White Card): income from €3,000/month, 1+1 year visa, fast processing — but you cannot bring family
- •Estonia: income from €4,500/month, visa up to 1 year with no path to permanent residency; pairs perfectly with e-Residency for running a European company
- •Georgia: no visa needed at all — 365 days visa-free, and small-business status taxed at 1% of turnover up to ~$155,000/year takes a couple of days to register
Asia and the Middle East: the tax havens
- •UAE (Virtual Working Programme): income from $3,500/month, 1-year renewable visa, income tax — 0%
- •Thailand (DTV): instead of income, 500,000 baht (~$14,000) in savings; a 5-year multiple-entry visa with stays of up to 180 days per entry (+180-day extension)
- •Japan: income from ¥10 million/year (~$68,000), a 6-month non-renewable visa — a "try living here" format rather than a relocation
Thailand's DTV, launched in July 2024, became the most talked-about program in the segment: five years of multiple entry for a 10,000-baht fee is unprecedented value. The catch is that the DTV leads to neither permanent residency nor optional tax residency: spend more than 180 days a year in Thailand and you become a tax resident automatically.
Latin America
- •Costa Rica: income from $3,000/month ($4,000 for a family), 1+1 year visa, foreign income exempt from local tax
💡 The nomad's golden tax rule: 183 days in one country almost always makes you its tax resident — regardless of what your visa says. Plan your tax configuration alongside your visa, or a "tax-free" year can end in assessments from two jurisdictions at once.
“A nomad visa answers the question "where can I live?". But choose by the answer to "who will I be in five years?" — a resident with an EU passport, or a perpetual tourist with a suitcase.”
If the goal is a passport, pick Spain or Portugal. If it's maximum after-tax income — the UAE or Georgia. If it's flexibility without commitment — Thailand. And if in doubt, start with a consultation: moving tax residency retroactively costs far more than planning it in advance.